Team Argos-Shimano sprinter Marcel Kittel won Stage 1 of the Tour de Picardie in a bunch sprint yesterday, continuing the winning form he displayed in the Tour of Turkey.

The team worked hard throughout the day, keeping check on the breakaway of the day as well as keeping Kittel out of the wind as much as possible. The plan to bring the race back for a bunch sprint worked perfectly and Kittel pulled it off at the end.

"Straight from the start a group escaped and as we were riding for a bunch sprint we took the initiative immediately," said sports manager Marc Reef after the stage. "A couple of other teams helped out on the front to bring them back before the finish.”

"The sprint was pretty hectic. Tom Veelers, an important lead-out man, punctured at a bad time and it cost him a lot of energy to get back to the front. Then inside the last 3km there was a crash and we were back in the middle of the bunch after that."

"Reinardt Janse Van Rensburg brought it back together and impressively towed the train back up to the front before Jonas Ahlstrand, Roy Curvers and Ramon Sinkeldam did their lead-out and Kittel finished the job. I'm really happy how the guys dealt with the situations as they happened and did the right things at the right time. Tomorrow [Saturday] is another sprint so hopefully Kittel can show his speed once again."

Following the stage, Kittel said: "I am really happy with this win. In the beginning of the race I didn’t feel great, but in the final I found my legs. After the Tour of Turkey I had some time off but also did some quality training. We passed the finish line once before the finish so we could do a bit of reconnaissance and made a good plan for it. We decided to come to the front as late as possible as there was quite a cross wind and the road was very wide. As soon as we entered the final five km it was very hectic.”

"Unfortunately we lost Tom Veelers but as soon as we were on speed again, the other guys brought me to the front. With 160 metres to go I started to sprint, it was a very long and hard sprint but luckily I made it. It is really good to see that everybody believes in the plan and that everybody stayed cool and relaxed. The experience that we have now in combination with the trust that everybody has is what makes us successful."